2 a.m.

Chapter 6

When I pull up to my house I find for once it looks empty. No lights are on, and no cars are piled in front of the driveway which means I can actually park in it for once. It almost feels eerie now coming home and not having someone there already. It's not even eight yet on a Monday night so you would think at least Myra would be here, shit even Kevin. But I don't mind being alone so much, it feels weird but at the same time I enjoy having time to myself.

"That means bubble bath for me," I sing to myself as I unlock the door. I switch on the porch light and lock the door behind me. Everyone has a key of their own and half the time they use the door in my room even though that means climbing to the second story. I smile to myself and wander into my room, dropping my things on my bed. Tonight is a fuzzy pajama pants kind of night.

There are so many things on my mind all at once while I gather my things for a bath that I almost don't know what to think about first. But as usual the issue that's most important pushes to the front of my brain. Myra. Her dad didn't call for her or come looking, and she hasn't gone home yet. I know she has more things she'll want to get from home and I know Kevin doesn't have anything here. Eventually she'll have to go home and get her things, and then what? What will her dad do to them when he finds out that they're living here now? I can't even imagine, and I shudder just thinking about it, dropping my towel. I pick it up and head to my bathroom but pause. With all the shit going on and life sucking in general I think this bath calls for something better than my small tub.

I hesitantly open mom's door, knowing no one is in there but still afraid someone will jump out from behind a shadow and attack me. Her room is dark and musty and you can tell it has been neglected. There are boxes piled against the wall from when I cleaned my old room out and when Myra and Derek cleaned the guest room, but other than that nothing has been moved since... before everything went to hell. Seeing it all makes my chest ache for when I could lay on my mother's bed with her and just talk about our days. I shake it off though and go to the bathroom, which is what I was aiming for in the first place. When we moved in mom updated all the bathrooms, and for hers she got an uber expensive and spacious spa tub. The kind that has colored lights and jets, oils that infuse the water and special soaps for the bubbles. It can easily fit four people comfortably and honestly is more of a hot tub than a bathing tub. When I was little I would pretend it was the ocean and I was a mermaid, swimming through the colored waters and looking for my prince...

Looking at it now I see clearly it's no ocean, and I'm no mermaid. But it is huge and I can lay down in it and relax as much as I want. The bathroom is probably the most luxurious room in the house with its heated floor tiles and expensive shower. Mom really went all out and did the whole water from every side shower, complete with a build in stereo system. Get this, there's even a fucking iPod dock in the wall next to the tub and shower head. I never understood why she needed the shower in the corner when she had this monster spa tub but then as all little girls learn sometimes you just want to shower instead of sit in bubbles.

Stepping onto the tiles is cold, and I flick the switch for them to heat up. Even though the room hasn't been used in ages it reacts instantly to use. Just in the time it takes me to walk to the tub the floor has warmed. I set my things on the counter gently, moving aside some of mom's stuff that she's left behind. Her makeup is scattered on the counter, everywhere but somehow looking like she purposely scattered it to look like that. It's funny how someone can be gone for so long but with one look at their crap it feels like they could be home any second. Suddenly I can't stand the quiet anymore. I plug my iPod into the ridiculous wall outlet, grateful mom just "had to have it", and fill the room with my music. I select the playlist for when I want to unwind and the soothing notes of my favorite song fill the room.

I know the spa hasn't been used in awhile but when I turn it on it's just as new as the day we got it. Everything is full and stocked and I select the lavender scented oils for tonight. Water immediately begins to fill the massive bowl and the lights make the water look colored. Funny how something so simple can put me in such a relaxed state. I test the water and then strip down, lowering myself in. My muscles are all tense and sore, my eyes heavy from sleeping so long. The hot water helps though and slowly I find myself completely relaxed. Which is why I jump so bad when someone's head pokes in the doorway and they knock on the wall.